The much trumpeted Balochistan Health Card programme has not yet been launched despite reserving the funds in the last financial year by the provincial government.
The people of Balochistan are still waiting to avail free medical treatment facility as the government has decided to provide the health cards to every family to ensure universal coverage of the initiative. Talking to APP, Baz Gul Kakar urged the provincial government to launch the health card programme on emergency basis and provide best healthcare facilities to the poor and flood affected masses in public and private sector hospitals. As the current torrential rains and heavy floods have affected the normal life of the masses, he said, people suffering from chronic diseases are unable to get free treatment in the public and private sector hospitals across the country. The provincial government has decided launch Balochistan Health Card facility at the cost of Rs 5.914 billion, to provide health insurance facilities amounting to Rs1 million to 1.875 million families.
According to health card programme the Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC) will be considered the health card for the permanent residents of the province. The objective of the program was to improve the health status of the targeted population through increasing access to quality health services and to reduce poverty through reduction of out-of-pocket payments for health expenditures. “Currently over 1.8 million families are settled in Balochistan and there will be 100 per cent coverage under the initiative and the scheme would be funded by regular budget in the future,” according to the programme. In the supposed programme, healthcare services to the beneficiaries will be provided in the public and private hospitals and more than five to six hundred hospitals all over the country would be on the panel.
Source: This news is originally published by pakistantoday